Bicycle



(No Model.)

J. LEWIS. BIGYGLB.

No. 286.835v Patented oct. 16, 1883.

UNITED 'STATESI PATENT OFFICE. V

JOSEPH LEVIS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BICYCLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters-Patent No. 286,835, dated October16,1883.

Application filed September 10, 1883. (N o model.)

To all whom it may concern: Y Be it known that I, J osErII LEwIs, asubject of the Queen of Great Britain,1 residing in Chicago, in thecounty of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Bicycles, of which the following is a speciiication.

Bicycle-riders are subject to a class of accidents known as headers, 7and usually caused by running against obstacles. In them the rider iscommonly thrown forward head foremost, with his machine on his back, andas 11e is unable to jump or otherwise clear himself from his machinewhen they occur, by reason of the rigid 'handles used for steering, heis obliged to submit to an ugly fall with the machine. Serious injury tothe person' is often caused in this way.

rlhe object of the present invention is to obviate this danger to therider, and it is aecomplished by constructing the steering-handles withaj oint at the steering-post in such manner that they are perfectlyrigid for steering purposes, and yet, in ease of a header, the thighs ofthe rider will strike them in such a way as to instantly open themforward and clear the way for him to drop on his feet, free of themachine.`

The invention will be more fully understood from the followingdescription and accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure l is a front viewof my improved bicycle-handles. Fig. 2 is a bottom view, and Fig. 3 aside elevation, of the same. Fig. 4 is a section upon the line 4 4, andFig. 5 a section upon the line 5 5, of Fig. l. FigaG shows a modiiiedform of the invention, partly in section.

In the drawings, A represents the steeringpost; A, a bracket attachedthereto and earrying handles, which are represented by B B. At theiradjacent ends the handles are furnished with metal socket-pieces b b',which are hinged together by a horizontal pivot, C, passing through thesame and secured in the front and rear plates, D D', which form a partof or are rigidly attached to the bracket A. These plates transmit thestrain caused by the steering to the bracket and post, and of coursesleeve d, through which the projection a of the bracket A passes, andit, together with the plate D and said sleeve, forms a head or boxingfor the joint of the handles. Preferably the handles are kept in thehorizontal position by the engagement therewith of some sort of ayielding lock device. The form of this device which I prefer consists oftapering points E, projecting into corresponding recesses, e, in thehandle-sockets, said points being kept in such engagement by the springsE', secured upon the front plate. These springpoints Inay of course, byreason of their shape, be forced out of engagement whenever any unusualforce is applied to the handles in the direction in which the latter areintended to yield. As it is obvious that other forms of locking-springsmay be employed for this purpose, I do not wish to be limited to theform just described. Another form is shown in Fig. V6. In thismodification the socket ends r of the handles are provided with triggersF, engaging with the part d by means of lips f, and yieldingly held insuch engagement by the springs F', and the handles are released, so theymay swing upon their pivot, by the thighs of the rider coming againstthe triggers and freeing them from the bracket.

The operation of the device is as follows: When the rider meets with aheader and is thrown forward, his limbs come in contact l with the underside of the handles and eX- ert power thereon in the direction in whichtheir hinge allows them to open, so that they` move into a parallelposition. This permits the rider to free himself in an instant from allentanglement with the machine. Of course the rider may turn the handleson the hinge by his hands if he has presence of mind to do so. `Thedotted lines in Fig. l show the handles partially opened, and in thesame figure the outlines of the metal socket ends of the handles areclearly shown by similar lines.

Being rigid, except in the direction in which the riders limbs strikethem in headers, my improved handles are equally efficient for steeringas the former construction, and it is 2. In a bicycle, theSteeringlmnclles hinged obvious they may be easily adapted to any at thepost and provided with yielding lockio forni of steering-post, and thatthe construcing devices, Substantially as specified.

tion of Jche joint may be Varied in many Ways. T f 5 I Cmm JOSEPH LE IS,

. l. In a bicycle, the steering-handles hinged VitneSSes: at thesteeringpost, substantially ns and for H. M. MUNDAY, the purposespeciienl. l EDW. S. EVARTS.

